Warming up in Ukraine: Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said a short time ago that several units had successfully attacked on the eastern front and breached Russian defenses in two local arenas in the Bakhmut sector.
Malyar wrote on her Telegram channel that in one direction the forces advanced to a distance of 700 meters, and in the other – to a depth of 1,600 meters.
"We are making progress on a fairly broad front and successfully," Malyar wrote. "Occupying dominating hills. The enemy is on the defensive and trying to maintain its positions." She even published a map with Bakhmut surrounded by a circle – and did not spare.
Maliar's enigmatic message on Telegram, photo: Hannah Malyar's Telegram channel
For two days, pro-Russian bloggers have also been writing about Ukraine's specific offensive operations in the Vohlder region and nearby Bakhmut sector.
Reminder: A little over a week ago, Russia declared the occupation of Bakhmut after an offensive and siege that actually began last August. Ukraine claimed that a tiny part of the city remained in its hands even after the Russian declaration of occupation, but on Monday Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of Russia's Wagner force, acknowledged this. In the days since the declaration, Ukrainian forces have tried to capture territory around the city and appear to have made some gains.
Earlier this morning, the Russian Defense Ministry announced a large-scale offensive by Ukraine in the Donetsk sector over the past 250 hours. Moscow claimed to have halted the attack, killing 16 Ukrainian soldiers and destroying 21 tanks, three armored personnel carriers and <> armored vehicles. Kyiv did not comment directly on the report, but shortly after the Russian announcement, the Center for Strategic Communications reported that Russia was stepping up disinformation.
For weeks, tensions have been building ahead of the major Ukrainian counteroffensive, which is supposed to liberate significant territory from Russian occupation. Over the weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was "ready to launch an operation."
Are today's events the beginning of the counteroffensive? This question is difficult to answer because very few are familiar with the Ukrainian plans, including the date and outline of the attack (for example: whether a main direction for the offensive will be chosen, and if so, whether it will be accompanied by diversionary actions, or whether it is a cluster of smaller attacks on several fronts). It is not inconceivable that at least some of the actions today are shaping the battlefield or pinpoint battles designed to locate and press Russian weak points.
Yan Matveyev, a Russian military analyst who works for imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny, speculated that if Ukrainian operations near Voldar go well, it could allow it to break into the port of Berdyansk and Mariupol on the Sea of Azov.
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